Breaking Ground for the New Skyway Library!

Community members celebrated the Skyway Library groundbreaking on the afternoon of Wednesday, July 9. As the crowd gathered, 25 children from the Renton/Skyway Boys & Girls Club's summer music program entertained the crowd with songs.

KCLS Interim Director Julie Acteson welcomed the community to the event to celebrate the start of construction for the new 8,000 square foot library.

"The new library will be within walking distance from the Boys & Girls Club, a middle school and several elementary schools," said KCLS Interim Director Julie Acteson.

A number of dignitaries addressed the crowd, including KCLS Board Trustee Jessica Bonebright, Friends of Skyway Library President Theresa McLean, West Hill Community Association President Bill Bowden, King County Sheriff's Office Captain Ted Boe and King County Sheriff's Office Deputy Brian Barnes.

"We appreciate the voters in the community who supported this project," said KCLS Board Trustee Jessica Bonebright. "This is going to be a great resource for the community."

Project architect Matt Aalfs highlighted the design process, which incorporated input from the community. He said the new building will have almost twice the space, materials and computers.

"Our goal was to design a building that is inspiring, full of light and strong colors," Aalfs said.

With gold shovels in hand, local dignitaries were joined by children with small shovels to break ground. The crowd enjoyed refreshments courtesy of the Friends of Skyway Library, balloon animals by Lolo the Clown and giveaways.

Monthly Updates+-

2015

July
Construction continues to progress. Completion anticipated in late 2015.

June
Construction is progressing well.

May
Construction is progressing well. Anticipated completion is November, 2015.

April
Construction is progressing well. Anticipated completion is late 2015/early 2016.

March
Construction continues with the foundation and steel work in progress. The anticipated completion date is December 2015.

2014

December 2014
Construction has begun. Work to remove contaminated soils discovered on site has significantly impacted the schedule and budget. KCLS received a clean environmental report for the land prior to purchase and is seeking legal counsel about a potential claim against Atlantic Richfield/BP. The project is anticipated to take approximately one year to complete.

November 2014
Construction of the new 8,000 square foot library started in July. The project is anticipated to take approximately one year to complete.

October 2014
Construction of the new 8,000 square foot library started in July. The project is anticipated to take approximately one year to complete.

September 2014
Construction of the new 8,000 square foot library started in July and work on clearing the land for building is underway. The project is anticipated to take approximately one year to complete.

August 2014
Construction of the new 8,000 square foot library started in July and work on the building foundation is underway. The project is anticipated to take approximately one year to complete.

July 2014
More than 150 community members gathered for the groundbreaking event on the afternoon of July 9. A number of dignitaries addressed the crowd, expressing excitement for the project, including KCLS Board Trustee Jessica Bonebright, Friends of Skyway Library President Theresa McLean, West Hill Community Association President Bill Bowden, King County Sheriff's Office Captain Ted Boe and King County Sheriff's Office Deputy Brian Barnes. The crowd enjoyed songs performed by 25 children from the Renton/Skyway Boys & Girls Club and refreshments sponsored by the Friends of Skyway Library.

June 2014
After the building permit was received in late May, the project was bid in early June and was awarded to Beisley Construction. A groundbreaking event to celebrate the start of construction will be held on Wednesday, July 9, 3pm, at the site of the new library, 12690 Renton Avenue South, Seattle. The community is invited to attend the event, which will feature music and refreshments.

May 2014
Anticipating that the permit will soon be approved, KCLS bid the project in May with proposals due June 5. To prepare the future library site for development, Iron Creek Construction was awarded the contract to demolish the existing one-story building on the property.

April 2014
Anticipating that the permit will soon be approved, KCLS plans to bid the project in May. To prepare the future library site for development, Iron Creek Construction was awarded the contract to demolish the existing one-story building on the property.

March 2014
The project is still in for permitting with King County. To prepare the future library site for development, specifications for demolition of a one-story building on the property have been released and bids are due in April.

February 2014
The design development phase continues for the new 8,000 square foot library project. Permit documents have been submitted to King County for review.

January 2014
The design development phase continues for the new 8,000 square foot library project. Permit documents have been submitted to King County for review.

2013

December 2013
The design development phase continues for the new 8,000 square foot library project. Permit documents have been submitted to King County for review.

November 2013
The design development phase continues for the new 8,000 square foot library project. Permit documents have been submitted to King County for review.

October 2013
The design development phase continues for the new 8,000 square foot library project. Permit documents have been submitted to King County for review.

September
The design development phase continues for the new 8,000 square foot library project. Permit documents have been submitted to King County for review.

August 2013The project is in the design development phase and architects with Weinstein A/U continue to finalize permit documents.

July 2013The design development phase continues for the new 8,000 square foot Skyway Library and project architects are finalizing permit documents.

June 2013The design development phase continues for the new 8,000 square foot Skyway Library and project architects are finalizing permit documents.

May 2013The design development phase continues for the new 8,000 square foot Skyway Library and project architects are working to finalize permit documents.

August 2012The design process is underway for the new library. The first of two public meetings was held on August 1, allowing project architects to present preliminary designs and receive input from the community.

June 2012Architects with Weinstein A | U are starting on the design process for the new library. The first of two public meetings will be scheduled in the near future.

May 2012
Architects with Weinstein A/U will initiate the design and planning process for the new Library. The process includes two public meetings, the first of which will be scheduled in the near future.

April 2012
The architecture firm Weinstein A/U has been selected to lead the planning and design process for the new library. The firm will coordinate plans for new frontage improvements on the east side of Renton Avenue South and along the west edge of KCLS' property, which will start this coming summer. Construction of the building is anticipated to start in 2013-14.

March 2012The planning process continues for a new library and KCLS is working to secure architects to design the new building. Interviews will be held in late March and community members will be invited to participate in the selection process. The new Library will be located on Renton Avenue South, where two parcels were recently purchased. Frontage improvements are scheduled to start this summer, including curbs, landscaping and a sidewalk on the east side of Renton Avenue South.

February 2012The planning process is underway for a new 8,000 square foot Skyway Library. Two parcels were recently acquired on Renton Avenue South and KCLS has issued a Request for Qualifications to solicit architects to design the new building. Submittals are due March 1, 2012.

January 2012
KCLS has completed negotiations to acquire two parcels located on Renton Avenue South. A due diligence review of the sites will soon be underway as well as work to secure project architects.